Kasujja reversing brain drain

By Shamilla Kara

Reverse brain drain is taking shape in Uganda. While the norm has been that countless experts migrate from Africa to developed countries in pursuit of ‘greener pastures,’ several are returning.

Titus Kasujja is one of the returning few, representing the new wave of exposed émigrés returning home with acquired skills and expertise, a phenomenon economists have called ‘brain circulation’.

Based in Denmark, Kasujja hopes to improve the lives of his compatriots by connecting his two worlds with the best of what each one offer.

Kasujja lives a transnational life, often visiting home and trying to eke a living by linking both countries in skills and education.

Driven by a desire to succeed and an urge to help others benefit from his experience, Kasujja is in the country to interest Ugandan students to study in Danish Universities.

“Having studied in both countries, I have seen the benefit of experiencing other cultures and values and it has highly impacted on my general outlook on life and work. With that in mind, I would like to see more of my countrymen exposed,” says the production engineer.

Kasujja’s company, Study International Denmark, was borne out of his belief in the quality of education he got in Denmark, which he says prompted him to contact universities there to take on Ugandan students.

“The Danish education opens doors to many opportunities in Europe and the world over. And when you do the math, the cost of studying compared to the opportunity one gets is worth it,” he says.

In addition to the education fair he has just concluded in Uganda, Kasujja is also involved in connecting Ugandan farmers to the Scandinavian country through Danish Know How, a Danish company that links Ugandan farmers to Danish farms for technological studies.

As the company’s regional representative company covering Uganda, Rwanda and Southern Sudan, Kasujja has so far undertaken projects, which include a solar panel building plant and pig breeding in Uganda.
Why Denmark?

“Denmark has welcoming and warm people. There are numerous opportunities for people to better their skills and expertise and I am bringing this to the attention of my countrymen,” he says.

“Also, the country has been my home for 20 years, so I do not know what other countries have to offer.”
 
Mainstream career
Kasujja’s passion is in project management and he is keen to further his education to pursue a career in project management.

“I have vast experience in product design and engineering,” says Kasujja, who currently works with Oticon A/S, a Danish hearing aid manufacturer, as a production assistant.

Before, Kasujja worked as a production assistant for Gaoja Solar A/S in Hvidovre Denmark, mainly in the quality control and productions department. This was from 2008 to 2010. Simultaneously, from January 2008 until May 2009, he worked as a production assistant and machine operator with Widex A/S in Copenhagen, Denmark. The company is one of the leading hearing aid manufacturers in the world.

Previously, he worked with Nanon Technology, a nanoscale material manufacturer in Brøndby, for one year as a team leader responsible for the productions department, quality control, documentation and reporting and machine maintenance.

Prior to that, in 2006 until 2007, Kasujja worked as a team leader with JJ Mechatronics A/S in Jyderup, Denmark, an engineering and electronic firm offering appliance solutions to the electronics, medical and telecom industry.

On working and living away from home

“Living away from home has its challenges, but home will always be home,” says Kasujja.
He speaks fluent Danish, Luganda and Kiswahili.

Kasujja has studied at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology in Koge, Denmark, as a multimedia designer.
In 2004, he studied to become a production technologist, with his thesis dealing in operations engineering. 

Kasujja’s initiative are a good sign that there is a growing influx of exposed emigrants returning to the country, a positive for the growth of Uganda’s human capital.